About 50km east of Ferrara, the Abbazia di Pomposa is one of Italy’s oldest Benedictine endowments. The monk Guido d’Arezzo reputedly invented the musical scale here, and in the 11th century it was one of Italy’s foremost cultural centres. Its decline began in the 14th century, and in 1652 vespers were sung here for the last time. The nave of its church has elaborate mosaic paving and is adorned with frescoes from the 14th-century Bologna school and artworks by Vitale di Bologna. There’s also a small museum.
Ïã¸ÛÁùºÏ²Ê¼´Ê±¿ª½±'s must-see attractions
28.43 MILES
Sometimes, after weeks of strolling around dark Italian churches, you can lose your sense of wonder. Not here! The lucid mosaics that adorn the altar of…
Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo
28.7 MILES
An old legend states that Pope Gregory the Great once ordered the Apollinare's mosaics to be blackened as they were distracting worshippers from prayer. A…
28.4 MILES
In the same complex as Basilica di San Vitale, the small but equally incandescent Mausoleo di Galla Placidia was constructed for Galla Placidia, the half…
27.35 MILES
Complete with moat and drawbridge, Ferrara's towering castle was commissioned by Nicolò II d'Este in 1385. Initially it was intended to protect him and…
Museo Nazionale dell'Ebraismo Italiano e della Shoah
27.7 MILES
Born by an Italian Parliamentary decree to create a National Holocaust Museum, the National Museum of Italian Judaism and the Shoah partially opened in…
26.96 MILES
Housed within what is arguably Ferrara's most beautifully preserved palace – the 1505 Palazzo Costabili – the city's national archaeological museum is…
26.87 MILES
Dating to 1385, the Este's 14th-century pleasure palace suffered significant earthquake damage in May 2012 and the museum will be shuttered until 2020 for…
9.57 MILES
Inaugurated in 2017, the main event of this fascinating and beautifully laid-out museum, housed in the 18th-century neoclassical Comacchio Hospital, is…
Nearby Emilia-Romagna attractions
9.19 MILES
The Manifattura dei Marinati chronicles the town’s traditional eel-fishing industry but is perhaps most fascinating as the place where skewered eels and…
9.57 MILES
Inaugurated in 2017, the main event of this fascinating and beautifully laid-out museum, housed in the 18th-century neoclassical Comacchio Hospital, is…
10.22 MILES
The Unesco-recognised Parco del Delta del Po is a regional park encompassing one of Europe’s largest wetlands and a pair of alluring lagoons, the Valli di…
26.83 MILES
Your ticket to Palazzo Schifanoia also gives entry to this nearby museum, which has a small, undocumented collection of Roman and Etruscan stele, tombs…
26.87 MILES
Dating to 1385, the Este's 14th-century pleasure palace suffered significant earthquake damage in May 2012 and the museum will be shuttered until 2020 for…
6. Museo Archeologico Nazionale
26.96 MILES
Housed within what is arguably Ferrara's most beautifully preserved palace – the 1505 Palazzo Costabili – the city's national archaeological museum is…
27.03 MILES
This palace was once owned by Giovanni Romei, a top administrator to the Este clan – and his importance shows in the architecture. The austere brick…
27.04 MILES
Ferrara's monumental cemetery, designed by Borso d’Este in 1461, is an off-the-beaten path gem in Ferrara. Two snaking, semi-circlular arcades frame the…